The Seventh Man
Somewhere to the west of London a group of men wander unchallenged out of a refugee holding centre.
A refugee is a person who: ‘owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country’
This group of disparate individuals almost immediately disperse. The novel tells of their journies within the UK.
Ebook and paperback copies available here – http://shorturl.at/afmV8
For a signed copy £8.00 (incl. postage/ UK only) email and PayPal me here – asamsmith@hotmail.com
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
Trees : the tree prospectus
by Sam Smith
“The novel made me want to walk in the woods and, this time, see the trees, really see the trees.” Brian Daldorph: Coal City Review #45
“Wonderful book exploring the nature of writing, of love, of grief and also giving details on trees in the way that Moby Dick has chapters on different species of Whale.” Liberty Rowley
“One of my favourite reads of the lockdown – and I’ve been reading a lot! Trees is a great story but interspersed with information about native tree species. Gripping from start to finish.” Jos Mister
“I know when it’s been a good read when I’m thinking about the characters long after I’ve finished the book.” Dr Andrew Taylor
“Definitely a good read. ‘Trees’ uses a very personal perspective to shed light on how relationships start, grow and change as the realities of the world intrude, and how in turn we can change the world. Although the lives of the characters are the central driver of the story, trees are important to all of their lives in different ways, in turn illustrating how trees are essential to all life. / Trees is about everyday people whose lives lead to unexpected places, of discoveries about themselves and others, with trees almost as characters in their own right such is the detail that the story tells us about their individuality. A story with depth but so easy to read.” Richard Szwejkowski
“Ultimately ‘Trees’ is an exploration of family and how individuals cast out from their birth family find their sense of belonging, their purpose. A forest holds many species of trees with specific roles: the lower level rely on the upper levels for shade, the spacing allows each their required access to nutrients in the soil, flowering shrubs attract pollinators, but, within this structure, each plant is enabled to become and grow individually. In a family where an individual is denied, Gustav and Hazel were put up for adoption, Lungren was cast out because his mother wouldn’t let him develop and become himself, Hazel’s adoptive mother was left in the shade of an older sister and deprived of the familial support her sister received, how does that individual find their way? Through her adoptive mother, Hazel found her forest. The other characters are still searching.” Emma Lee: The Blue Nib
Previously published in paperback by Wordcatcher of Cardiff. For a signed copy £11.00 (incl. postage, UK only) email me – asamsmith@hotmail.com – and using that email address paypal me.
Or you can send me a cheque, payable to ‘Sam Smith’ at 38 Pwllcarn Terrace, Blaengarw, Bridgend, CF32 8AS
eBook available here – http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1140646
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
Something’s Wrong
“Lack of originality is certainly not a criticism one could level at Something’s Wrong by Sam Smith. This is one of the most innovative novels I have read for some time. The form is that of a series of transcripts of tape recordings of someone who, as it becomes rapidly clear, has some serious mental health problems. This is a harrowing work, which raises some disturbing issues about mental health care generally, and care homes in particular. You feel yourself literally getting into the mind of the character, and caring about what happens to him – both rare attributes in novels these days. . . .” Guy Fraser-Sampson“I recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in the care of those with mental health problems.” Farm Lane Books
“Something’s Wrong: in fact as we find out during the course of many short monologues spoken into a tape recorder by the narrator, Robert, there are many things wrong in the sleepy little coastal town of Widdercliffe, and the world it represents. … In the first half of the novel, we see that there’s plenty wrong with Robert and his fellow residents at The Grove group home and their supposed supervisors. There’s the sort of unease all around that a reader senses in Kafka’s The Trial, for example. … Robert’s voice in this novel is as compelling as the voice of Dostoyevsky’s narrator in Notes from Underground. In both cases the speaker is an outsider who sees too clearly the shortcomings of the world that won’t accept him. …. Sam Smith’s novel is artfully written and revealing indeed. Through his narrator, Robert, we’re given as readers a first person narrative of what it is to be on the outside of society….” Coal City Review
Originally published in paperback by Wordcatcher of Cardiff. Paperback copies, £8.99, available from me here – asamsmith@hotmail.com
eBook available here – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1144784
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
The Care Vortex
‘Now and then a book comes along that can never be forgotten, a book whose characters touch you deeply and remain in your memory. A story that shocks you into thinking about something you had never considered or completely changing your previous perceptions.The Care Vortex by Sam Smith is such a book…. The Care Vortex is fast paced, interesting and believable. The characters are all too human, people like you and I. Ordinary people trying to deal with unimaginable events. / Would I recommend this book? Yes, without reservation. It is not an easy book to read, because of the subject and the issues raised in it. When Charles Dickens wrote Oliver Twist he was criticised for using criminals and prostitutes, in writing about subjects that were considered taboo. Yet Oliver Twist is now regarded as a classic, not only an excellent story, but a book that changed attitudes and made people wake up and take notice. Perhaps one day the same thing will be said ofThe Care Vortex. / If you want to read a book that will lull you to sleep at night, this book is not for you. It is no Little Orphan Annie with pretty pig-tailed children and fairy tale endings. Those trapped in the Care Vortex are damaged, the details harrowing. But for all that, it is a story of heroism, of people reaching out to each other and trying to overcome what has been done.‘ Gillian Davis
“The Care Vortex is a vitally important book. It should be read by anyone who has responsibility for children and young adults, whether they be parents, teachers, care workers, police, administrators … it’s all too easy in environments of near-isolation – family homes, care institutions, schools – to sweep the truth (and the children) under the carpet.” Neil Marr: author of ‘Bullycide: Death at Playtime’
‘… a no-holds-barred account of one day and night in a care home for disturbed young girls. At times, it reads more like non-fiction than fiction and therein lies the roots of its success… You cannot help but be drawn into the lives of the characters…. This is the real world and it grabs you by the throat and forces you to bite on the harsh reality of life for these maladjusted girls. To finish reading this book is to come out wiser and more understanding about the problems of damaged young people…’ David Hough
Originally published in paperback by Wordcatcher of Cardiff. Paperback copies, £8.99, available from me here – asamsmith@hotmail.com
eBook available here – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/569487
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
Undeclared War: Paths of Error
‘Undeclared War, Constant Change, and As Recorded can be read in succession, or equally stand independently as analyses of the changes wrought by recent decades on the lives of ordinary people. Based around Paignton, Sam Smith uses a group of friends from a small ordinary English town and explores their individual paths of error against the fabric of life. Highly sexually charged and using blunt language, these will only cater to very specific tastes.’ Devon Life
‘Set within a seaside town Undeclared War… makes for bleak reading. But it showcases the interweaving of the characters and the images they have chosen for themselves perfectly. If Quadraphenia stoked your fire then you’ll certainly get off on this … Roll on books two and three.’ Deian Vincent
‘UNDECLARED WAR is a serious work. It may offend and sometimes enrage but Sam Smith also entertains with his vivid imagery, facile prose style, and sometimes insightful, sometimes whimsical, often cynical, but always stimulating perceptions of history and the human condition. Highly recommended.’ Rich Patton
Undeclared War, the first of the Paths of Error trilogy is available now as an ebook – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/545469
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
Constant Change, the second of the Paths of Error triptych, also has its beginnings in Sixties Paignton, although there the similarity ends.
‘…a very topical analysis of the relevance of religion in a constantly moving-on society…’ New Hope International
Available now as an ebook at
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/555184
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
As Recorded
Told throughout in interview form, in ‘As Recorded‘ the hero, Sniff – as he was known in ‘Constant Change‘ and in ‘Undeclared War‘ – tells of the childhood of the trilogy’s 5 main characters – Newt, Blue, Pancho, Mort and himself – from their starting school in Curledge Street to their all going on to Totnes Grammar; and of their first fights, first sex, and various escapades. And, of course, he tells of his later life too, as a boxer and a businessman, father and lothario…. And why he should be being interviewed….
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/562673
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
Everyday Objects Repurposed As Art
Everyday Objects Repurposed As Art
Sam Smith’s Everyday Objects Repurposed As Art is a big book, 130,000 words, and at least 3 stories in one. A neurotic scriptwriter, his two sons’ different tales, his script coming to the defence of the much-maligned Edward Bibbins Aveling, who was responsible for first translating Das Kapital into English and in part for the formation of the British Labour Party. A scriptwriter himself the free-loving Aveling was also charged with making Eleanor Marx deeply unhappy.
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
Eviction from Quarry Cottages
A contemporary history, Eviction from Quarry Cottages relates the events subsequent to the death of farm worker John Cox, what befalls his widow Bridget and his daughter Sarah. Plus what happens to his Quarry Cottage neighbours, his parents, in-laws and friends. Love is found and lost, cheatings discovered, union involvement, avarice and indifference encountered, understandings reached, resolution of a kind found. If there is a hero it has to be 12 year old Sarah.
Available now in a variety of ebook formats, ISBN 978-1-4523-1009-1, from SmashWords –
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/8661
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
2 Bridgwater Days
‘…. a smooth read…‘ or so said BintArab
Available now in a variety of ebook formats, ISBN 978-1-4523-1007-7, from SmashWords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7974
View sample pages here – 1st 10 pages – prose
Sam Smith books & blog, plus The Journal 